The Right Way to Handle a Bad Painting (Most Artists Do the Opposite)

You’re painting along and everything is going great. You found a reference that you love. The first layers went down with ease. You’re starting to feel like this is going to be the one.

And then it all starts to go sideways.

You didn’t like that last layer. The colors got muddy. The brushstrokes look overworked. Is that even a pear? 

You’re ready to throw your hands up, toss the painting, and declare the entire day wasted.

But not so fast, says John MacDonald (Ep. 92). Bad paintings aren’t the make or break you think they are. But your response to them might be. In fact, the way you react to failed paintings plays a major role in how quickly your skills develop.

Here’s why.

MacDonald points out that when you have a bad painting day, you really only have two options in how you respond.

The first is a punitive response. The second is a curiosity response.

On paper, that might not sound like a big deal. Who cares if you get negative? What difference does it make if you’re frustrated for a while?

But over time, this difference matters more than most artists realize. Your reaction to bad paintings doesn’t just affect your mood that day. It affects how often you come back, how willing you are to take risks, and how quickly you improve.

Let’s look at each one.

The Punitive Response

This is when you treat the painting as proof that you are not cut out for this. Nothing ever works. Everyone else has it easier. Painting starts to feel pointless.

You get frustrated, walk away, and sometimes you don’t come back for a while.

This response slows learning dramatically, and not because the painting went badly. It slows learning because now, before you can paint again, you have to push through layers of self-criticism just to return to the studio. You have to recover emotionally before you can even begin again.

Over time, this creates a pattern. Your brain starts to associate painting with pressure, disappointment, and failure. Instead of seeing your work as information, you start seeing it as evidence that you will never get where you want to go.

When that happens, it becomes harder to start the next painting. And if you paint less often, you learn more slowly.

Not because you’re doing anything technically wrong, but because the emotional cost of painting has gotten too high.

The Curiosity Response

But there is another way to look at a bad painting.

Like a detective.

Instead of asking, “Why am I so bad at this?” you ask, “Where did this go sideways?”

Was it a skill gap?
A technique issue?
A process choice?
Did you skip a step?
Did you rush the values?
Did the colors get muddy because the plan wasn’t clear?

This response keeps the painting in the category of information instead of judgement.

And that one small shift can make all the difference.

When you stay curious, you don’t need to protect yourself from the painting. You can look at it longer. You can study it. You can try again. You stay in the game.

Faster Learning

Of these two responses, one is a clear winner when it comes to faster learning.

The curiosity approach works better because your brain does not learn well in a fight-or-flight state, which is exactly what punishment creates. When your brain feels threatened, it wants to escape, not experiment.

Curiosity does the opposite. It keeps you engaged.

And failed paintings can actually become your best teachers. Strong paintings come from strong skills. When a painting doesn’t work, it is showing you exactly which skill needs strengthening. Value control. Edges. Color harmony. Drawing. Simplification. Process.

If you stay curious, every bad painting points you toward the next thing to learn.

If you stay punitive, every bad painting makes you want to stop.

Not the Wrong Path

A bad painting day feels bad. It just does. There’s no way around that.

But if you can learn to quiet the inner critic and look at the work more neutrally, everything changes.

You are not a bad person if a painting didn’t work out. It doesn’t mean you’re on the wrong path. It doesn’t mean you lack what it takes to be an artist.

It just means you haven’t mastered a certain set of skills in a certain order yet.

And that’s ALL it means. You just need more practice. 

Put it to practice

If your current reaction is punitive, that doesn’t mean you’re hopeless. It just means there is another skill to learn. Alongside mixing color and handling a brush, you can learn to look at your work with curiosity instead of judgment.

The next time you have a painting that doesn’t work, try this before you walk away.

First, write down three specific observations about what you see. Stick to facts, not judgments.
For example:
“The values are too close.”
“The focal area is unclear.”
“The colors don’t feel harmonious.”

For each observation, write one possible adjustment you could test. Smaller is better. Make a value plan. Simplify a shape. Limit the palette.

Next, if you have the time and the bandwidth, start again. Even if it’s only for five minutes. Use the same subject or reference so the comparison is clear.

Work through a second painting. Finish it today or over the next few days.

This is one of the reasons I like structured challenges like the 20for20. When you know you’re coming back the next day anyway, a bad painting doesn’t feel like the end of the story. It just becomes part of the process. You get another chance tomorrow to try again, adjust something, and keep learning.

The goal is not to fix the first painting. It isn’t even to create a perfect second painting.

The goal is to practice turning a failed painting into information you can use.